Our Fees: Domestic Sales, Purchases and Mortgages

Like the great majority of solicitors, we charge a fee based on the value of the property. Our scale of charges is as follows:

Consideration up to and including £130,000 £750.00 plus VAT (£900.00)

£130,001 – £200,000 £895.00 plus VAT (£1,074.00)

£200,001 – £300,000 £995.00 plus VAT (£1,194.00)

£300,001 – £400,000 £1,075.00 plus VAT (£1,290.00)

£400,001 – £500,000 £1,095.00 plus VAT (£1,314.00)

£500,001 – £750,000 £1,200.00 plus VAT (£1,440.00)

£750,001 – £1,000,000 £1,500.00 plus VAT (£1,800.00)

Our fees for dealing with transactions exceeding £1,000,000 are as follows:

£1,000,000 – £3,000,000 3% plus VAT

Exceeding £3,000,000 5% plus VAT

For the sale or purchase of a leasehold property, there is an additional charge of £100.00 plus VAT (£120.00). Likewise, there is an additional charge of £100.00 plus VAT (£120.00) for properties sold at auction or newbuild properties.

What our standard fee includes

Sale:

1 Routine correspondence including that with estate agents and the other party’s solicitors.

2 The normal work involved in deducing title.

3 Replying to any enquiries raised by the Buyers Solicitors.

4 Dealing with the redemption of your first mortgage, including all related correspondence.

Purchase:

1 Routine correspondence including that with your first mortgagee (including correspondence in connection with the drawing down of your mortgage advance) and the other party’s solicitors.

2 Making all usual Local Searches, Land Charges Searches and Land Registry Searches.

3 Raising any enquiries necessary to ensure that the title to the property is free from any restrictions which would affect its resale value.

4 Dealing with your mortgage including registration and complying with mortgagee’s normal requirements.

5 Registering your title at HM Land Registry (including dealing with routine queries from the Land Registry).

What Our Standard Fee Does Not Include

For some work, we may make fixed additional charges as follows:

1 Dealing with the Stamp Duty Land Transaction Return £50.00 plus VAT (£60.00)

2 Dealing with the issue of a title insurance policy including any necessary correspondence £85.00 plus VAT (£102.00). For preparation of any necessary statutory declarations, there would be a further charge of £125.00 plus VAT (£150.00) per declaration.

3 In the case of an unmarried couple purchasing a property, the preparation of a Deed defining their respective rights (We strongly recommend such a Deed) £225.00 plus VAT (£270.00).

4 The preparation of a Power of Attorney £85.00 plus VAT (£102.00)

5 Where we are asked to arrange completion in under five working days of exchange of contracts £45.00 plus VAT (£54.00).

6 Correspondence with a second mortgagee or bank in connection with the redemption of a mortgage £65.00 plus VAT (£78.00) in each case.

7 Dealing with a Licence to Assign a lease £145.00 plus VAT (£174.00)

8 Arranging transfer of monies by direct bank credit £15.00 plus VAT (£18.00) per transaction (The bank also makes an administration charge)

Examples of other work for which we reserve the right to make a reasonable additional charge are:

1 Correspondence and work needed to resolve a non-routine problem connected with the property, e.g. a right of way, planning difficulty or boundary dispute.

2 Where dealing with a purchase requiring the perusal of an exceptional amount of documentation.

3 In the case of a leasehold property, additional work required because of service charge provisions or particular problems in the Lease.

5 Abortive transactions.

5 Additional work in connection with the redemption of a mortgage.

The Mortgage of a Property

We do not charge an additional fee for dealing with a Bank or Building Society Mortgage affected at the same time as a purchase. For a freestanding remortgage or private mortgage (i.e. where the loan is made by an individual rather than a financial company) we charge a scale fee at the same rate as for a purchase or sale.

Searches

We may make the following Searches in a purchase transaction:

Local Authority Search. The purpose of this is to discover, e.g.
(i) whether the road fronting the property is adopted or not
(ii) what Planning Permissions affect the property
(iii) whether the Local Authority is aware of any breaches of planning or Building Regulation Restrictions.
(iv) whether the Local Authority has served any Notices adversely affecting the property.
Drainage and Water Search. This confirms whether the property is connected to a public sewer and main water supply.
Environmental Search. The main purpose of this is to establish whether there is any risk of flooding or subsidence but also whether the property is built on or affected by contaminated land.

Institutional Mortgage Lenders require these searches to be made.

Out of Pocket/Third Party Expenses

These include:

Stamp Duty Land Tax. Please use the link to HMRC which will confirm the level of Stamp Duty Land Tax payable tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax. The rules are complex and we would be pleased to discuss individual circumstances with you.
Local Authority Search. This varies depending on the Local Authority and can range from £120.00 to £250.00 (including VAT).
Drainage and Water Search and Environmental Report are approximately £120.00 (including VAT) The cost can vary depending on the area in which you purchase.
Pre-completion searches approximately £7.00 (no VAT). This is for carrying out Bankruptcy Searches against each purchaser in line with a Mortgage Lender’s requirements and a search at the Land Registry to claim a priority period in which to register the purchase.
Land Registry fees. These fees are paid directly to the Land Registry to register your purchase and are based on scale and depend on whether or not the property has a registered or unregistered title. For example, a registered title for a property up to £200,000 would cost £95 and an unregistered titled at the same price would cost £190 (no VAT). You can visit gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees which sets out the scale fees applicable.
Some Mortgage Lenders provide their instructions via an internet-based platform. They charge approximately £30.00 (including VAT) for issuing Mortgage Instructions and if the Lender you choose uses this platform, we would also pass on this cost to you.

Generally

1 Our bill will be rendered to you on completion together with a statement of your other expenses (e.g. Stamp Duty). We need to have cleared funds in our possession before the anticipated completion date.

2 In the absence of agreement to the contrary, we will account to you within 4 working days of completion.